Being healthy in the playoffs is taking priority over seeding http://www.kingsproshop.com/authentic-drew-doughty-jersey , with a few teams sitting their top players Saturday in the final game of the regular season.MVP front-runner Taylor Hall will sit out the New Jersey Devils‘ regular-season finale after the team clinched a playoff spot but can still move up the standings.New Jersey is resting Hall, fellow forwards Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac, and defenseman Sami Vatanen in Game 82 at Washington, and it isn’t alone in taking precautions. The Columbus Blue Jackets won’t play stars Artemi Panarin, Seth Jones, Zach Werenski and two-time Vezina Trophy-winning goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky in their final regular-season game at Nashville.Columbus coach John Tortorella told reporters he was ”absolutely not” trying to avoid facing the two-time defending Stanley Cup-champion Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round. New Jersey coach John Hynes similarly answered that giving Hall a break is more important after a grueling push to clinch the franchise’s first playoff berth since 2012.”We’re not looking to get in the playoffs and just be a Cinderella story,” Hynes said before his Devils faced the Metropolitan Division-champion Capitals on Saturday night. ”We’re looking to get in the playoffs and win, and (Hall is) a big part of that.”Hall, who is one goal short of reaching 40 for the first time in his career, said he’s cool with the decision to rest instead of taking a chance on the eve of the playoffs.”It’s a good time to get some rest and recuperate a little bit,” said Hall, who has 93 points in 76 games and is expected to be a finalist for the Hart Trophy. ”We’ve played a lot of hockey lately, and a lot of the stuff in the standings is out of our hands other than our game.”No Eastern Conference first-round matchups have been determined going into the final weekend of the season. The only series that’s set is the Winnipeg Jets facing the Minnesota Wild out West as the second- and third-place teams in the Central Division.There are still numerous combinations of matchups among the seven teams in the East that have clinched, with the Philadelphia Flyers and Florida Panthers still in the running for the final spot. Matchups can make a big difference in how the playoffs go Dustin Brown Jersey , but players and coaches are careful not to look like they’re favoring one opponent over another.”I learned a long time ago that you don’t wish for certain opponents,” Devils defenseman Ben Lovejoy said. ”It can backfire very quickly.”The Tampa Bay Lightning certainly aren’t playing that game. With a chance to clinch first place in the Atlantic Division and avoid facing the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round, the Lightning are expected to start backup Louis Domingue in net at Carolina instead of Andrei Vasilevskiy, who leads the NHL in wins.The Boston Bruins, who could catch the Lightning, are going with backup Anton Khudobin against Ottawa, but they also play Sunday night against Florida in a game that was rescheduled because of snow.— ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) While Evander Kane watched Stanley Cup playoff hockey from his couch during the first eight years of his NHL career, the power forward felt confident he could thrive in the pressurized atmosphere of the postseason if he could only get the chance.When his long-delayed opportunity finally arrived Thursday night, Kane did everything he ever thought he could.Kane scored two goals in his first career playoff game and Martin Jones made 25 saves as the San Jose Sharks beat the Anaheim Ducks 3-0 in their first-round series opener.The game was a remarkable breakthrough for Kane, who joined the Sharks in a trade six weeks ago and reached the NHL postseason for the first time after 574 regular-season games and far too many early summers in Atlanta, Winnipeg and Buffalo.Now 26 years old and tired of waiting, Kane has played ferociously since he landed in San Jose, contributing 14 points in 17 games down the stretch before his playoff outburst.”It was nice to finally get out in the playoff atmosphere Womens Jake Muzzin Jersey , and it was fun to finally get my first playoff win,” Kane said. ”It’s nice to contribute. That’s my job. I feel confident in my abilities. I don’t think it was my best game, but I’m never going to be mad when we get a playoff win and I get to contribute.”Game 2 is Saturday night at Honda Center.After a scoreless first period, Kane capitalized when two Anaheim penalties in 15 seconds left the Sharks with a two-man advantage. No Ducks were anywhere near Kane when he settled in the slot and scored on a one-timer from captain Joe Pavelski.Kane did it again with Pavelski’s help less than seven minutes later, sliding the puck past goalie John Gibson on a 2-on-1 break and crashing headfirst into the post immediately afterward. The rout was on 84 seconds later when Brent Burns slipped a long shot through traffic for his 13th career playoff goal.”(Kane) is a world-class player,” San Jose coach Peter DeBoer said. ”I think Buffalo was a tough situation for everybody, and when he got the opportunity to get into our room and play with Burns and Pavelski, he was re-energized. That’s what you’re seeing: A guy who got his passion back and came to the rink excited.”According to the NHL, Kane became the fourth player in the last 20 years to score multiple goals in his playoff debut, joining Alexander Radulov (2007), Mike Green (2008) and Gabriel Bourque (2012).With Kane leading the way, the Sharks easily took early control in the series between California rivals. San Jose and Anaheim have been regular playoff teams for the past 15 years, yet are meeting in the postseason for only the second time.Gibson stopped 30 shots for the Ducks, who lost a series opener at home in their third consecutive playoff series. Anaheim had won seven straight home games down the stretch Jeff Carter Jersey , losing in regulation at home just once in 17 games since late January.”You can’t afford to take seven minor (penalties) and give the opposition an opportunity to practice their power play,” Ducks coach Randy Carlyle said. ”It takes any momentum that you had building in the game. It flips everything in their favor.”Jones capably handled the Ducks’ infrequent scoring opportunities to earn his fifth career playoff shutout. Anaheim fans threw scattered boos at their team during the third period, particularly when the Ducks struggled to get the puck up the ice.The Ducks promptly gave away the home-ice advantage they had claimed with a frantic late-season rally past San Jose into second place in the Pacific Division. Anaheim won its final five regular-season games to finish with 101 points, while the Sharks lost five of their last six and ended up with 100.”I can count probably on one hand how many good shifts that we had the whole game,” Anaheim defenseman Francois Beauchemin said. ”We have to be a lot better than that.”At least slow playoff starts are typical for these Ducks, who have lost Game 1 at home in four of their last five playoff series over the past three seasons. Anaheim still has appeared in two of the past three Western Conference finals.San Jose and Anaheim haven’t faced off in the postseason since 2009, when the eighth-seeded Ducks stunned the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Sharks in six games in the first round. Three players on each roster are still around for the rematch, including captains Ryan Getzlaf and Pavelski.NOTES: Cam Fowler missed the opener with an upper-body injury, and the Ducks’ top defenseman doesn’t appear to be close to returning. The club has said Fowler’s injury could keep him out for several more weeks. … Sharks C Joe Thornton skated in pregame warmups, but didn’t play in what would have been his first game since Jan. 25. The 38-year-old veteran has a right knee injury, but hopes to return soon. … Ducks D Kevin Bieksa also didn’t play, but is likely available after missing the last month due to surgery on his left hand.—